Rights in the EU

Good morning, Immigrants!

   Clearly the morning is not at all good and I would like to get a load of my chest. As any integrated member of  society, I have need of this invention called a mobile phone. Sure, it isn't that I have just realised we have this invention at our disposal, but as my old phone broke, I decided to buy a new one, a "smart-phone". I set my sights on the new Sony Xperia S, with a retail price of 550 euro. Good! Now, let's get myself to the local phone network company to see what that advertisement with 250 euro off your phone if you get their monthly plan is. The whole idea was that it would have been helpful financially to get that discount.
   Getting there, all my dreams have been shattered by this middle-aged, over-weight sales representative as the first thing she asked me was : "Are you a Cypriot?". Dumb-founded I reply: " What does that have to do with it?". It turns out that you can't apply to their monthly plan unless you are a Cypriot or have permanent residence in Cyprus (this means to have lived and worked continuously for 5 years in Cyprus).As I have been living and working continuously here for 3 years, clearly that doesn't apply for me yet. But, if I want to get that monthly plan I'd have to leave a deposit of 500 euro to them. What's the point in that? If I could afford the cost from the beginning, I wouldn't have needed the monthly plan. I could have just bought the damn phone!
     Here's the problem: as a citizen of a member state of the UE, shouldn't I be entitled to the same rights as the citizens of the state in which I reside? Well, I do! But there is no competent entity to enforce these rights, nor to punish the ones that do not follow these rights. As a lowly human being, even if I complain to the Consumer Protection Agencies, my cries would have died out without being heard by anyone.
     The benefits and rights provided by the UE are all just theories and dreams to be had, because in reality, you are the same as before it was formed. Just another immigrant with no rights only on paper... 

FIRE!!!...

Well, I was working!.. not very hard, not very focused, just enough to call it work, with a slight feeling of guilt for those money I would cash in at the end of the month. It was one of the first days of spring in Larnaca, and the sun was there, smiling at everybody, trying to reassure us that summer was on the way, after a long and freezing winter. It was midday, and the town paced itself to the lazy way of  a Cypriot afternoon, ready for an afternoon nap. But, somewhere it was very different...

While enjoying the day, I get the first sign of fire: smell of burnt plastic... than, I see a column of smoke rising... and no alarm, no siren... what is going on?!... I wait for a minute, while trying to figure out where it's all happening, and its close, maybe a couple of hundred meters from my workplace. And still, no siren, no sound of fire engines rushing to the scene. What's happening?!... I decide to call, and dial 112 trusting someone else was faster than me, but it's better to make sure.

"-Alo! I would... " is all I get to say, before the voice of a man interrupts me almost angry at me for daring to dial the emergency number
"-Ne, re, xero... xero" (as in: "yes, mate, I know...") was the reply to an unspoken question

I tried to tell him that I want to report a fire, and he dismissed me very quickly, not even trying to figure out if I am talking about the same fire as he was. I had to insist in telling him at least the area of the incident. And, I ask myself, is this guy paid from the taxes that I pay? That thought was scared away by the sound of the fire engine rushing to the scene. They were coming... finally!

I shook my head in disbelief. You can explain delays in procedures, you can say it is expensive to run an emergency service, or any other public utility company, but you cannot explain attitude! you cannot explain failure to appropriately answer an emergency call! A life, or someone's life savings might depend on that call; it's almost as if I see the power plant explosion all over again, and it's this sort of complacent and relaxed approach, together with a spark, that makes disaster happen. I would not forgive a dispatcher who rushes me, saying he already knows all about it, and sends the ambulance to a wrong address, while a member of my family or a loved one dies. I would not forgive a job so poorly done! Would you?

Summertime....

The sun fails to shine! And even when it does, it has teeth, caresses my need of warmth with a cold smile... I'm here, but not here, it seems to say...

It was a long  winter in Cyprus, long and terrifyingly cold, and not only so because of the weather. The effects of the weather can be felt only outside, and we don't live outside. I, personally felt cold and uncomfortable the whole winter. I thought it was just me, but when I asked around, everybody felt the same and nobody had cure for the chronic chill. Why was that?

Hmm... got me thinking! People live in worse conditions, and I don't hear them complain; I come from Romania, a country with both proper Winter and Summer, and I didn't feel like that before! What was so special here that made me shake everyday, keep me so cold I couldn't even use the computer at times (that's how cold I would feel sometimes). Air condition unit, clothes, hot tea, winter shoes, nothing could cure the bone deep feeling of cold I had, apart from the occasional sunshine invading my bedroom. The air condition would make it better , but has to work continuously, and that would make the air inside so dry, my sinuses would explode of pain. The minute it stops, the temperature will race towards zero at an alarming pace and it would stop at around 7-8 ºC, exactly how much it is outside, making me go through 15ºC difference in half an hour.

The secret of this performance lies in the poor design of housing. Cheaper to build - better profits for the constructor! The outside walls of many buildings are 20 cm wide, and have no thermal insulation, making it from the start an energetically inefficient environment (which combined with the latest rise in the electricity prices, gives us a huge burden). On top of that, the wooden boxes housing the blinds are poorly constructed, giving gaps, and making a direct way of air communication with the outside. Sliding, single pane windows, that just rest in their track make it an even bigger problem. It's not one building like this, but a lot, even in the newest ones. they are made with no consideration for energetic efficiency, it doesn't matter if we talk about winter or summer. And electricity doesn't come cheap in Cyprus, especially now, with the biggest supplier blown up!

It would be simple, if done properly from the very beginning! Insulation is not hard to apply, windows (if designers and contractors think of it beforehand) can be thought of well, blinds can be removed or designed to be housed on an external box, doors properly sealed, floor made of wood instead of tiles, and that alone should bring down the electric bill by 30%, and remove the need of continuous use of the air conditioning unit, in both winter and summer. But it takes money to do so, not much, but it takes some...

I reckon, with an increase of less than 5% of the build cost (lets remember that in Cyprus, from the main contractor to the guy that actually does the work is a long list of subcontractors and "maestro's", that add each a certain percentage only for having their name added to the list of those milking the big cow, literally screwing up 2 types of people that should be very important to them: buyers (who's bill is becoming indecently big - guess, why?, and the actual worker (who gets paid 5 euro/hour, and most of the time he has no idea if the employer  paid the contribution to the social insurance, or if he is getting paid on Friday evening, when he finshes at 7, after 12 hours of work, 5 days a week, and often with overtime forgotten by the "maestro"). But this is another topic I will take in a future article.

Sales Pitch

One can do so much to bring an interested person to the point of making the sale happen! You just need a product and the will to do it. But I´m in Cyprus, and here, well, things get done differently...

I was called couple of days ago, by a insurance company (I won´t name it, it´s pointless, they are pretty much the same). Called, is one way of naming it, as his secretary called me from her mobile (I was thinking this must be a scam), told me what it's all about, and set up a meeting, in a coffee shop (not on the premises of the bank).

The day the meeting was to be held i thought i should better check this. And that I did! I called my contact person in the bank that owns the insurance company, and asked if that person really exists, and if that is a regular practice, to meet potential customers outside the office. The answer was... Yes, that person exists, and that practice seems to be ok. That was a bit shocking for me; so, i get called by the secretary from her personal phone, to arrange a meeting with a guy, on small financial matters, outside the perimeter of the bank.
I don't know much how people run an insurance business, but this had me thinking: How serious are these guys? I found out soon, as I met the guy, and boy, was it interesting!

From the moment we sat down, to the moment I broke off the meeting, the respected insurance agent managed not more than 50  words, organized in about 10 sentences, none of them relevant to the objective of the meeting. The most I could get from him was that he was offering insurance. When asked what type of insurance, he said he has all kinds, and than kept quiet. When asked how much I have to pay, he said it depends, and than kept quiet.

And it went on for 20 minutes!... 20 minutes of unilateral discussion, almost to the point of making it sound like an interrogation, and than i snapped, and just put it in his face that I will never buy anything from him, not when he looks like he's being forced to spend that time with me, not when his texting his girlfriend/wife/boyfriend/pet and make me lead a discussion that was supposed to ease my pocket of 70 euros, monthly! Do you see the irony?

I stopped it, it was insulting, and I don't even know why i went through the 20 minutes. My interest was there, I just needed the idea being channeled to my need, but i didn't get help. Maybe because I am an outsider (but in that case i cannot explain the fact that he had the meeting set up), or because he thought i didn't have the money (even so, the more potential customers you have, the bigger the chances to selling something), I will never know...

Corruption in Cyprus at all levels says former minister - Cyprus Property News

THERE is a lot of corruption at various levels of public life, former finance minister Charilaos Stavrakis said, and the bad thing is, it is almost acceptable in Cypriot society.
“In dealing with public life for the first time, I clearly realised there is a lot of corruption at various levels,” Stavrakis said in his book Economy in Politics and Politics in the Economy, presented to the media last Friday.
The former minister said certain government departments wield great power and their “sometimes arbitrary “decisions concerning town-planning, health, taxation and other matters, “can create huge benefits or burdens to entrepreneurs and companies.”
“Many times I felt that these people’s main concern was to help certain businessmen instead of trying to defend the state’s interest,” the former minister said.
Stavrakis said he did not believe there was an issue of outright bribery but to maintain good relations with the crème de la crème of Cypriot entrepreneurs “was perhaps more important for some state officials.”
Some aimed at securing important positions in banks or other organisations after retirement from the public service, Stavrakis said.
“It would be interesting for one to count how many former ministry permanent secretaries or ministers or other officials, ended up – after retirement – serving on the boards of companies or in organisations they previously had a close relation with.”
The former minister said Cyprus is a small country and one can see that some entered politics poor and at some stage became very rich.
“What is bad is that this is almost acceptable to Cypriot society and reaction is very limited.”
Stavrakis did not offer any names “because I think many of these people are known.”
Concerning himself, Stavrakis said only once did someone try to approach him.
He was a Greek businessman who owned a very large company operating in the wider financial sector.
“The finance minister’s signature would have fetched him huge revenues and he called me repeatedly asking to meet alone,” at a secret location.
Stavrakis refused, and offered to see the businessman at the ministry in the presence of his associates.
“It is then that he used the characteristic phrase: ‘are you pulling my leg minister?” Stavrakis said.
The former minister acknowledged that his personal wealth was, strictly speaking, an important element.
“I cannot know how big the temptation would be for someone who might be in need of extra income,” he said.



Corruption in Cyprus at all levels says former minister - Cyprus Property News

Motivation

   Just laying here in front of the screen, I try pick myself up, and find the right words. I know, this is not a contest, nor a life threatening situation, but the need to find motivation blooms in times of life navigation with no heading.
   Where to go from here, what to do? I can go anywhere, but a new place doesn't mean a new, bright, life. I can do anything, anything new, but in doing so, I cannot guarantee myself a solid base for an upper step in life. Even more, there is a risk of turning things to worse.

A new approach!
   A new approach to all the old things in me, around me, away from me, that could be an answer.An answer that all us are looking for, on how to better our life. How? If, you think you might find answer in my article, you're wrong! I am not a guru, I am just a, statistically speaking, part of you! And that small part of you urges you to search, to analyze, and to Improve. Yes, to improve, as we are never to old, or too young for it. Improvement offers you a chance to look at the old you, and say: "I couldn't have done that 3 months before!". Continuous improvement, offers you the chance to repeat that step, over and over again, and that is how you build Confidence. Improving and building confidence unveils a path that has continuation in setting a road map, and that is connected to Motivation. And when all this elements come together, just imagine what you can be!

No clouds over Larnaca; big grey clouds over Cyprus.

Indeed, not even the smallest cloud over Larnaca! But, the storm was here, and what a dangerous one! It was a storm of men, not of God, a storm designed unknowingly by men, not by nature, of an incredible force, with an terrible ending: loss of life!
How did it come to this? Well, it is pretty clear it´s an almost criminal negligence! No one can explain how that huge amount of dangerous material could be allowed to sit in the open, exposed to all that weather extremes and human errors or limitations, around communities and sites of strategical importance to Cyprus, because there is no explanation other than a death wish. I am no expert in explosives, economics or politics, but i know that what explodes has to be isolated, away from what is important for you, deeply buried into the ground. What is even more scary is that it went on for three years, being like a kamikaze warrior with a headband logo: ¨!!!Accident waiting to happen!!!¨. Taking notice, writing memos, having meetings about it, does not solve a problem like this; when life is in danger, clear, objective minds are needed, that need to see the obvious and react in a responsible manner. Writing a memo, shouldn't have lasted more than one hour, and a meeting in Nicosia about it shouldn't need more than 3 hours (including the trip to get there and back), which should have amounted to maximum one day (I am being really patient when i say one day) before a responsible decision to safely store that material can be taken. Anything else means playing with your children's life! But it didn't happen, whether it was about money (biggest problem of our time), politics (which, represents access to money, the big money!), or simply negligence, and the countdown stopped at 05:50h Cyprus time. Those responsible were not affected, and they will never be, politically or personally. They will come in front of the camera, will tell you they will assess the situation, will take the necessary measures, will put their head down simulating shame and regret, and give their condolences to the families of the victims. A month later they will come again in front of the camera, and they will tell you everything is under control, and that situation is starting to come back to normal, they will bribe you with a sum of money and other incentives (your own money, paid in form of taxes, that should have been used to safely store the danger away), and in a year time they will ask for your vote! ...Smiling, by the book, just like their image counselor told them to!
On the street i heard a lot of rumors, one that it was a terrorist attack, another that it was a frustrated Romanian worker, and even that it is the America's fault.... "America's fault?!?!..." i asked in horror, "How?". the explanation given to me by a poor bloke on the street was that USA forced Cyprus to impound the ship, and than refused to deal with it, leaving this small island with the biggest problem of its time. The word of USA weighs a lot in UN, but if Cyprus wants to be a part of it, it has to assume the same principles that guides it, and assume part of the responsibilities that derive from it. I am very sure the Americans put pressure on Cyprus to impound the ship, and its cargo, but i am also sure they thought Cyprus authorities knew how to handle this situation, and, most important, knew how to store explosives! That was only a word on the street, out of the mouth of a simple man. Unfortunately, I don't think he was thinking with his own mind, he was thinking with the mind given to him by the environment he lived in (a society governed by the same kind of people that will avoid the responsibility -collective or individual-  for what had happened in several days ago), where at fault is "the other guy"! We all are guilty, some for knowing, others for not knowing, some for not acting, and some for not acting energetic enough!
I conclude by launching a memory exercise: Let us all remember (wherever you are, Cyprus, Europe, Earth..), this event before we stamp the vote on our favorite candidate, because sometime we pay our voting mistakes with the life of our children!